africa product development

News

March 2nd 2012 - Ekumfi Ekrawfo - Site visit PUM

Margaret Asare (country representative PUM - Ghana) and Henk De Groot (senior expert) payed a preliminary site visit in order to conclude the application for PUM consultancy at the Ekrawfo Hub Farm.

PUM Netherlands senior experts is a non-profit organisation, which has been advising needy businesses in developing countries and emerging markets for over thirty years. To this end, PUM links these businesses, at their own request, to Dutch professionals who voluntarily devote their considerable experience to creating a better world. PUM therefore promotes entrepreneurship, self-sufficiency and the sustainable development of small and medium-sized enterprise locally.

By allowing these professionals to execute short-term, solid consultancy projects on the workfloor, businesses can establish sufficient knowledge to develop into a growth engine for the local economy. This benefits both employment and the sustainable economic development of the region. Furthermore, as the contacts established in this manner regularly develop into major trade relations, the Dutch economy also benefits.

February 20th 2012 - Accra - APD member of Ghana investment promotion council

The 10th of February APD's CEO Gerrit Valkenburg received the GIPC certificate from the Director Investment Services of the GIPC. GIPC is a government agency, re-established under the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre Act, 1994 (Act 478); to encourage, promote and facilitate investments in all sectors of the economy. GIPC facilitates and supports local and foreign investors in both the manufacturing and services sectors as they seek more value-creating operations, higher sustainable returns and new business opportunities. More info on GIPC via www.gipcghana.com.

Mr. Valkenburg is satisfied with the support of GIPC towards our projects. An official registration like this helps APD as well as other companies being accepted internationally as registered business opportunties in emerging Ghana.

APD's certification under the GIPC Act comes down to:

• Customs import duty exemptions or deductions for agricultural machines and materials
• Corporate tax incentives
• Investement guarantees
• Free transferability of capital, profits and dividends
• Insurance against non-commercial risks via the MIGA agency of the World Bank. This Convention guarantees coverage against risks such as breach of contract, expropriation, war and civil disobedience.
• Advantages of Double Taxation Agreements
• Investment Promotion and Protection Agreements of the investors

February 18th 2012 - Netherlands / Ghana - APD accredited for training by ECABO

APD is certified as an accredited traing company by Stichting ECABO, Centre of expertise on vocational education, training and labour market. All Dutch schools have access to the ECABO register in order to select companies where pupils can complete their in-company training. APD is delighted to implement the education element as a part of carrying out the sustainable message of the company.    

January 26th 2012 - Accra - APD Head quarter to Accra

The APD head quarter is moved from Kumasi to Accra. Since a while now APD has opened the office in Mandelastreet Weija, Accra. Recently the head quarter address is also changed to this office. All administration and operational services of the company are now centralised and located near by the most official bodies in the capital, the airport and the Ekrawfo site. The technical staff and workers have their base station in Mankessin, only a 20 minutes drive from the Ekrawfo site.  

January 15th 2012 - Citigroup - 15 Frontier Markets Offering Huge Returns For Adventurous Investors

In a recent report Citigroup listed 15 countries that "will provide big returns for investors for decades", said Business Insider. Some of the countries are well known, like Venezuela and Argentina, as future emerging markets, but some are too often underestimated like Kazakhstan and Ghana. "Frontier market" is the stage before becoming a emerging market.